Flush-closing sliding door



FLUSH CLOSING SLIDING DOOR Filed Jan. 6, 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Lsgaoos P. M. ELUO'T FLUSH CLOSING SLIDING DOOR Filed Jan. 6. 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Aug. 17, 1926.

iseaeea UNITED srATEs PATENT cierres...

PERCY M; ELLIOTT, on Ciiicaeo. iLLiivois; iintnin s.. ntLioTT,Y nXneUTni-X or sain TERCY in. ELLIOTT, nnonAsEn, Assieiioii To CAMEL CoiyIrANY, or oiiICAe-o; ILLINOIS,` A CORPORATION or ILLIiiois.

FLUSH-CLOSNG SL'IDING DOR.

Application filed January 6, 1923. Serial No, 610,964.l

This invention relates to sliding doors of the type in which the door, upon reaching closing position, is displaced bodily in a directiontran'sveise to the plane of siiding in order to cause itfto enter between the meinbers of the ear body Which define the door opening'v and thereby produce a sovcallcd iiush closure. v

The object of-the invention is to provide improved means for suspending the door With lfreedom toexe'cute its movement into and out of the door opening, as well as means for imparting its said movements; and the invention consists both broadly and specifically in the means hereinafter described andparticularly pointed out in the claims.

In flush closing sliding doors it is customary to introduce the forward edge of the door to its ultimate position Within theconfines ofthe door opening by diverting or in'clining the forward porti-on of the track upon Which the door travels, and equipping r the rear portion of the door with means which enables it to move bodily, transversely to the direction of sliding, into and out of its tightly closed position, and the preferred embodiment of the` present invention folloWsthis plan of manipulation, although, as will be seen, `theinvention which resides primarily in the means' for suspending the door with freedomof the aforesaid transverse movement as Well as the means for imparting such movement, 'or in a door equipped with such means, might be applied to both endsof the door` if conditions made it desirable to' do so.-

In carrying out theinvention, the door is suspended through means of a hangerl or hangers adapted to travel upon a track to bring the door to and from its position in front of the opening which it is to close, and this hangery is constructed not only With means for attaching it to the door to be suspended, but with means which permits it to change its angular rel-ation to the door in the direction transverse to 'its travel upon the track, .so that While the hanger is 'fined against displacement on thetrack in such direction, the door is rendered pendulous in said direction; and means are provided, preferablyv upon the door, for imparting such pendulous movement; the penldulous connection being preferably developed through means ofa hinge interposed'y between the hanger and the plate through which it is attached to the door; the ,means for irripartingy the pendulous movement consistingpreferably of a rock shaft carrying at itsend an eccentric or crank acting upon a member fixed with relation to the car body, andpreferably a portion of the track upon Which the car runs and preferably through meansof' a follower which remains in embracing relation to the track at all times and with which the crank arm engages; -the door being provided with a curb bar or other suitable portion which limits its outward movement, as, for instance, by projecting vertically behind the hanger, which in turn is kept from outward displacement by engagement" withl the track member; and the track and hanger .being disposed to support the door normally in its sliding position so that in swinging Of of its center to flush-position, the door Will be slightly raised and `Will therefore tend to gravitate out of its flush position to sliding position when releasedV and subjected to a minimum unseatingforce. i In the accompanying drawings, in'which the preferred embodiment of the-invention is .shown by Way of illustration-- Fi ure l` is a side elevation of a portion of a freight car and its sliding door `,to which the several features of the present invention are applied. i -f f Figure 2 is a verticalsection on the line .2X-2X of Figure l, drawn on an enlarged scale and with the intermediate portioiiiof the door omitted,rand the parts being in positions assumed lWlienthe ,doorA is' readsy for sliding.

Figure 3 is a section on the Aline BX-BX of Figure l, showing on an enlarged seal-e the L means for moving the door into and out. of tightly closed or flush position.

soy

Figure l is a top plan view of the track;

the length of the track, but inclined inwardly at its forward end 1, with the result that when the door 5 travels to position in front of the opening which it is to close, the forward end of the door will be retired within the outer plane of the -door frame, while the rear portion of the 'door hangs pendulously away from the car body but in position to be moved bodily inward in a direction transverse to its sliding movement in order to bring the remainder of the door iush with the door frame, or to a firm seating therein. In order that the door may execute this movement transversely to the length of the track, hanger 4, as will be best seen in Figure 2, is connected by means of a hinge pintle 6 with the plate 7 by which the hanger is secured to the door 5; said pintle extending parallel to the track 2 so that the resultant hinging action is transverse to the track; and a roller 8, through which the hanger 4 bears upon the track 2, has a convex tread which facilitates rocking movement of the hanger on the track. The hanger is thus adapted to change its angular relation to the door in a direction transverse to that in which the door slides, and the door can consequently move into and out of the door opening after the manner of so-called flush closing sliding doors.

Important features of the present invention consist in constructing the track 2 with a horizontally7 presented tread portion 2a and a vertical guard 14 depending therefrom, and having the hanger 4 equipped with a roller 8a engaging beneath the tread portion 2 without restricting the rocking movement of the hanger, and with the curb 5a that engages behind the guard 14 for limiting the outward pendulous movement of the door; also the employment of the curb 5al for seating the door against the outer face of the wall which defines the doorway, in addition to limiting the outward pendulous movement of the door by engaging the guard 14.

But as will be seen from Figure 2, the track 2 and the position of the hanger 4 upon it are such that when the door 5 is permitted to assume normal position of suspensionit will hang away from the body of the car and out of the recess of the door opening, so that it is free to slide to open position. Moreover, in entering the recess of the door opening, the arc through which the pint-le 6 swings has a slight upward inoment in the inward movement of the door, and therefore a slight gravitation in the outward movement, and this correspondingly assists in the releasing-of the door from its flush position in the doorway.

In order to impart inward movement to the door, and preferably outward movement as well, the rock shaft 9 is mounted in bearings 10 on the door, and carries at its upper en'd a crank arm 11 whose pin 12 enters an eccentric follower 13 having a horn 13il and engaging the inner as well as the outer face of a guard iiange 14 depending from the track 2.. By rotating' shaft 9 through an angle of, say, 90O the door will be caused to move from the position shown in Figure 2 to the position shown in Figure 3. Rotation can be imparted to the shaft 9 through any suitable means, such, for instance, as the controlling lever 15 shown in Figure 1; and this controllingrlever may be secured after the manner of a hasp through means of hasp lock 16, and thus serve as a locking means as well as a means of control.

In order to secure the bottom of the door in flush or tightly closed position, a bottom guide 17 is rendered adjustable by equipping' it with a two-armed guide wall 18 pivote'd thereon at 19 and so constructed that when rotated by its lever 2O to the position of Figure 3, the bottom curb 21 of the door will be held by the arm 1S in closed position, whereas a rotation of'the arm 20 through an angle of, say, 900 tothe right from the position of Figures 1 and 3 will bring the arm 18b of the adjustable bottom guide opposite the door curb 21, and this end 18", being in a plane more remote from the face of the car than the end 1S, will permit the door to hang away from the recess of the door opening. r1`he controlling arm 20 of the adjustable bottom guide 17 may be secured by a seal or other means passing through its iin 20Ll and through a keeper 22, as shown in Figure 3.

In illustrating the present invention the details of car construction selected are those of a 'double sheathed car, but it is to be understood that the invention is applicable to flush car doors for other constructions of cars, for instance, single sheathed and all -metal cars, and for other structures as well.

I claim 1. A railway car having a side wall providing a doorway, a door adapted to fit within said doorway and having a curb projecting over and seating against the outer face of said wall at the edges of said door way, a track, a hanger supported by said track for carrying said door with freedom to move pendulously in a direction transverse to the plane of said door, said track being provided with a depending guard overlapping said curb and adapted to engage said curb to limit the outward pendulous movement of said door.

2. A railway car having a side wall providing a doorway, a door adapted to lit within said doorway and having a curb projecting over and seating against the outer face of said wall at the edges of said doorway, a track, a hanger supported by said track for carrying said door with freedom to move pendulously in a direction transverse to the plane of said door, said track being provided with a depending guard overlapping said curb and adapted to engage said curb to limit the outward pendulous movement of said door, and rotary means carried by said door adapted to move said door pendulously to a position iush with said car wall.

3. A railway car having a side wall providing a doorway, a door adapted to lit within said doorway and having a curb proliecting over and seating against the outer face cf said wall at the edges of said doorway, a track, a hanger supported by said track for carrying said door with freedom to move pendulously in a direction transverse to the plane of said door, said 'track being provided with a depending guard overlapping said curb and adapted to engage said curb to limit the outward pendulous movement of said door, and rotary means carried by said door adapted to moveI said door pendulously to a position [iush with said car wall, said track having a portion of its length inclined toward said car wall whereby to direct a side edge et said door toward closing positionr Y 4. A railway car having a side wall 1ro viding a doorway, a door adapted to tit within said doorway and having a curb projecting over and seating against the outer face of said wall at the edges ot said doorway, a track, a hanger supported by said track 'for carrying said door with treedom to move pendulously in a direction transverse to the plane of said door, said track being provided with a depending` guard overlapping said curb and adapted to engage said curb to limit the outward pendulous movement of said door, and rotary means for moving said door transversely.

5. A railway car viding a doorway, within said doorway and having a. cur projecting over and seating against the outer iace of said wall at the edges of said doorway, a track, a hanger supported by said track for carrying said door with freedom to move pendulously in a direction transverse to the plane of said door, said track being provided with a depending guard overlapping said curb and adapted to engage said curb to limit the outward pendulous movement of said door, and rotary means for moving said door transversely, said rotary means being provided with locking means itor preventing rotation of said rotary means and for locking said door in closed position.

6. In a car, a car wall providing a doorway, a sliding flush closing door operatively associated therewith, a track having a depending guard flange, a hanger carried by said track having a roller through which it bears upon said track with .freedom of rocking thereon and having a projection engaging the underside of said guard flange, means for pivotallyV attaching said hanger to said door, and rotary means for positively moving said door in a direction trans verse to said car wall.

Signed at Chicago, of January, 1923.

PERCY M. ELLIOTT.

having a side wall proa door adapted to fit Illinois, this 4th day 

